Rocky Marciano – The unappreciated legend
September 30th, 2009
By Liam Santiago: I do not use the word warrior lightly, when describing a fighter. But, for Rocky Marciano, there is no word that fits him better. The legacy of Rocky Marciano constantly comes under criticism from ‘arm chair critics’, that have never really been involved in boxing. Marciano, was, without a doubt, the toughest champion ever.
Of course, like every fighter, Marciano had, and still has, his critics. They claim he had no finesse, he was too small. Today, they claim he fought only old men, past their prime and never fought anyone of great class. The one that comes up every single time is the argument that he fought old men and was over rated. Now, I will go about proving these critics wrong. Yes, his biggest victories did come against boxers in their descending days, but, which other champions did not beat champions on the decline? When Ali beat Sonny Liston, Ali was 22, Liston was 32, although many say Liston was older. When Tyson beat Berbick, Tyson was 20, Berbick was thirty three. When a 26 year old Ricky Hatton beat Kostya Tszyu, Tszyu was 35. The point is, Marciano seems to be the only one that takes the flak for this. Many of the ‘arm chair critics’, which I have mentioned, are very quick to shout their mouth off about how under rated Marciano is, yet, they do not look at the bigger picture.
Marciano beat every fighter that was put in front of him at the time he reigned as heavyweight champion. He never ‘ducked’ anyone. If you look at Joe Calzaghe, who recently retired with an undefeated record close to Marciano’s, he did not retire as a champion. That is because if he wanted to retire as a champion, he would have had to have fought the elite in his final two fights which he did not do. Marciano retired as a champion because he fought every fighter in his way until the very end.
Personally, I find it disgusting when I read an article about how under rated Marciano is, written by some English student, who does not really understand boxing at all. These writers also compare Marciano to fighter’s of different generations which is just stupid as things are done completely different now. They also use the silly phrase ‘the best ever’. The best ever? So what about boxers that lived 500 years ago? All these fighters that come into this category seem to be from the last century. To claim that a certain fighter is the best ever is just stupid.
The ‘Brockton Blockbuster’ has never got the credit he deserved. This guy was the toughest boxer to ever lace up a pair of gloves. To make him quit you would have had to cut both his legs off and chain him to the ground. He might not have had the finesses and all the fancy tricks, but the simple fact is, no one could beat him. In my eyes, he is the greatest.
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Al. I said in an article a couple of weeks back that if Cotto lost id never write another article, as I have predicteed Cotto so much.
So I will stick to my word lol.
1. Rocky’s name was made by beating once greats past their primes. To say Rocky beat Joe Louis is like saying Larry Holmes beat Muhammad Ali or Kevin McBride beat Mike Tyson, clearly all were shells of their original greatness.
2. FACT: Rocky never beat a legit puncher who weighed over 200 pounds and was in his prime.
3. FACT: The 2 best punchers Rocky fought, 38 year old Jersey Joe Walcott and 42 y.o. light-heavyweight champion Archie Moore, both put him on the canvas.
4. Boxing is a sport of around 130 years history under similar rules, so when calling a fighter the “greatest of all time” one is referring to the sport of boxing not Gengis Khan or some other warrior on the battlefield.
5. Turpin was not robbed against Robinson. Thats plain dumb. Robinson on a european vacation tour took him lightly the first time, in the rematch he was badly cut but he finished Turpin with great shots that is evident in the films. To say Turpin was robbed defies both logic and is completely revisionist, no one at the time was saying he was robbed.
6. In conclusion, Marciano was undefeated but he fought the best available in a weak era, which is all one can really say.
MARCIANO,
LIKE THE MAN SAYS, HE FOUGHT EVERYONE OF HIS TIME, AND BEAT THEM ALL. ROCKY IS DEFINED AS SIMPLY THE BEST.
Im also predicting Cotto to win, but im not going to stop writing if he doesnt, im right more than im wrong but ive still been wrong a fair few times! Pac proved me right by knocking out Hatton early but he proved me wrong when he boxed the ears off Oscar!
I will only be stopping writing on Nov 14th if Pac beats Cotto, which we all know wont happen! LOL!
if nov 14 is when this joker stops writing rubish then roll on nov 14
you git liam!i cant stop giggling!
Tim haha whata crap name
You should have checked your article before publishing it. If you don’t know the difference between overrated and underrated then stick to the internet forums.
couldn’t agree with you more. His knock out ‘Jersey’ Joe Walcott in the 15th is the stuff of legend
I think he held back against Cotto because of the cut. If he can land a body shot on Pac, I think it will be good night.
Margarito knocked hell out of cotto but he was huge and he had bloody iron in his gloves or something lol. Pac wont damage him like margarita did.
i think cotto isnt the same fighter anymore..i didnt like his body language against clottey
Na mate, Cotto will KO him!
good wright up liam marciano is great just like the hundreds of other great fighters boxing has changed so much now.back when marciano and co fought they did not know when 2 quit.i believe a lot of oldschool fighters would have beaten the modern fighters but the same could be said the otherway.i love boxing have seen most fights from 30 s to present.it would be great if fans stopped dissing fighters and just appreciate what they have done it takes a lot of balls 2 step in that ring and train everyday.
Torrecampo is Pacquiao’s worst nighmare!
pinoyboy :
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
if your serious then your an idiot
if your joking (which i think u r) then you are one hell of a F#cking funny guy!
Where did I abd mouth Khan? I said I thought he would want to fight Malignaggi because he cant punch? Explain?
rustico torrecampo would of given rocky a hell of a fight!
I definitely think Rocky is overrated. He came along at the perfect time in history. Now I am not saying he was a bum or anything even remotely close but all of his notable wins were against aged, legends of the game. Joe Louis was past his prime, Walcott was past his prime, Charles was past his prime…none of these champions he would have beat in their hayday. Joe Louis even said after the fight that if he was younger he would have knocked Rocky out and I totally believe him. Why do you think Rocky retired before fighting Sonny Liston? Rocky knew the limitations of his talent. Yes, he was a tremendous puncher and had a great chin but boxing skill wise he was just okay. What he did record wise was great but if you P4P put him in with the best heavyweights of all time he would definitely be out of the top ten in my opinion. Now if we really call him what he was…a cruiserweight…then there is an argument for him being the greatest cruiserweight of all time. But even then Holyfield might still hold that distinction.
QwertyKeyboard :
I agree entirely, he was referring to me throughou the whole article, but ive NEVER studied english and im not a student, doesnt mean i cant read and write though.
I think anyone can, you’ve just got to know your subject, be able to get your point across without contradicting yourself and have a good spell checker!
” some english student” … lol…. you wish you were educated
All a fighter can do is dominate their particular era.
Trying to say whether he would beat todays much larger boxers is pointless.
He fought everyone and beat everyone : simple.
Jason who do you mean by “We”? Anyhow, not a problem you’re entitiled to your opinion. Personally I agree with comments made earlier stating that Calzaghe has a good boxing brain who and change tactics instantly. He’s a very smart fighter whos style may not have been endearing to many boxing fans here in the US. I am presuming you are in the US as well.
agrree with jason
Ray that is because everyone knows calzaghe is highly overrated and we dont give praise to frauds
think it was 81 but could be wrong.
the cruiser division is relitevly new not that much about depthwise..thats the trouble 90% of heavys from the 70’s backwards are cruisers and less(was it 1979 the cruiser division was introduced?)i cannot beleive if you were over 12and a half stone you were a heavy
Many feel that Lastarza won against rocky in their first fight, it was ring’s most controversial fight of the year.
apart from Holyfield id agree, some would give him a real tough fight though
Agreed Calzaghe has never really been given the true credit he deserves.
I know DC, comparing him to the klitschko’s is just taking it out of context.
Tunney would give him a boxing lesson though.
And Dempsey had the same qualities that rocky had but not nearly as bad flaws, that would be great fight but get more one sided as it went on.
rocky to beat any cruiser ?
calzaghe is a wonder to watch..an energetic style..good boxing brain who can change tactics instantly..give the man his due
Jase t good one. I’ll take Foster. Foster was a hell of a puncher. I can see Rocky rolling on the apron from head to toe in reverse much like Victor Galndez did and getting socked..
marciano any day of the week jase.
rocky against jinx tko 15rd rocky. i cant see the rock fighting guys above 230lbs. rocky was good but 40 to 50 lbs is too much at heavy weight.is the rock a legend of course he is we are talking about him 56 yrs after he hung up his gloves undeafeted and all takers beaten
light heavyweight bob foster vs marciano..who wins
santiago, for the first time (prob only time) your article is spot on but why bring calzaghe up in a negative way yet again. Rocky is my favourite heavyweight a real legend
he would not have been able to walk forward against the big boys..it would be horrible to watch
RAY, you are 100% right!
I wonder how many folks in here have ever seen Rocky fight? I could see him get out boxed by most of the taller fighters, Ali, Holmes, Kitchsko Bros., and Lenox Lewis to name just a few. Rocky had an ugly croutching type style and would throw these haymakers from his knees. Pre historic stuff that quite frankly, would not work against the top heavy’s. I guess he never impressed me.
i think the k twos even though out weighing the rock by 4+stone would probably jab..jab…right cross hold…just in case
Marciano vs Wlad or Vitali?
Intresting ey?
excellent point, thats why he’ll always be remembered, and those are the right reasons to remember him, if you’re ever in north east america though id hold back on your spinks opinion though lol you’ll be lynched by the armchair fans!
dont forget the spinks jinx al.although it sounds like you have not
you are right al.all the very casual fans love the rock..the word’legend’has been used a few times today.he is ingrained into peoples pscyhe as a gentleman,an unbeaten never say die champ..and rightly so.
oh now i duno about that, Spinks would completely outbox Rocky, but if rocky landed flush its lights out for the jinx. 50-50 though
and heres the bombshell…..micheal spinks decision or late tko
The arm chair critics are not the ones who criticise rocky, thats where his fan base comes from, geography has a lot to do with it too, its the writers who slay him.
totally agree jase, rocky never fought anyone with greater power than himself and still found himself on the deck, tyson would totally overwhelm little rock.
if you want to know what tyson would have done to marciano,watch tyson vs michael spinks.a good fighter but just too small
holmes….rd8……………………………….foreman…rd2……………………………….ali…….rd10………………………………liston….rd4……………………………….louis..pickem
It would be a great fight…..
three rounds liam..tyson
Tyson, no more than 2 rounds.
What about………
MARCIANO VS TYSON!
bloody hell jason..you cant say that.ha ha
a fight between rocky and floyd would not have been a forgone conclusion..yes i can see the rock winning but floyd’s handspeed and youth could of made this interesting
Sorry,I dont see Rocky Marciano as a legend…He was highly overrated and his best wins came from over the hill fighters..
Which book is that Jase? Ive read his brothers autobiography.
DC, rocky would destroy both those guys.
he was mentioned in a book ive got as one of the greatest..its called ‘boxers from leamington spa’
would rocky have beaten the two champions that followed him ? Floyd would of fallen in 2 rounds ingomar in 1 round. the two champions after that would be a different question
Not that you, Al, would know the slightest thing about Turpin.
Well, that’s my opinion, you dont have to like it.
Turpin was not robbed in the rematch, where the hell did you hear that?
Robinson was at the tailend of european tour fighting every couple of weeks when he fought Turpin for the first time. he trained properly for the rematch and handily beat him.
Im not dissing Turpin, but no one has ever mentioned him among the greatest of all time other than liam.
thats boxing for you..start on marciano..seconds later talking about randy turpin
The simple fact is Francis. If I knew you were going to pick into every detail so much, I would have give it a seriously detailed check. Chill out for Gods sake!
Words from Al Francis:
”Mikey, Im an idiot” – so true Al!
Thanks Jase. Randy Turpin. He beat Robinson and was robbed in the rematch. Although his record does not show it, because of bad management, he was an amazing fighter!
Mikey im an idiot. thought that was you own opinion, but now realise it was actually a dissection of another contrdiction form santiago, my sincerest apologies bud!
turpin……dick or randolph?
i think a prime joe louis would of beaten rocky but there is no dought that he was a grate fighter
Mikey i get what your sayin, but i gotta stick up for liam on this one even though he does talk nonsense.
When discussing boxing and analyising who is the greatest it is common practise to recognise this from the beginning of the gloved era starting with John L Sullivan, which makes liam’s opinion a valid one.
are you american liam?you seem to have a problem with our dry british wit.at least your articles..along with al francis contain an interesting outlook on boxing..unlike some..keep them coming.regards.jase
You just leave yourself open to it bud!
Turpin, when has he ever been mentioned among the greatest? find one respected writer (not from this site) to ever say that and post the link.
“The ‘Brockton Blockbuster’ has never got the credit he deserved. This guy was the toughest boxer to ever lace up a pair of gloves.”
The toughest ever? So what about boxers that lived 500 years ago? All these fighters that come into this category seem to be from the last century. To claim that a certain fighter is the toughest ever is just stupid.
The greatest of the fighter’s that always come into that category, Ali, Frazier, Duran, Turpin, Robinson, Leonard etc.
You always have to constantly leave comments picking into everytghing dont you.
why dont we talk about the old time boxers in the same breath as tyson,ali,louis?its probably because they were not as good. having seen plenty of old fight footage over the years,i thought i saw jack johnson,corbett etc throw a combination once..but it turned out to be a jump in the film reel
The words of Liam Santiago :
“To claim that a certain fighter is the best ever is just stupid……In my eyes, he is the greatest.”
clap clap clap.
Jase. Yes, if it was a 12 rounder he would have lost. but luckily it wasnt, and, like all great, GREAT, fighter’s, Rocky found a way.
i agree with u liam
haha, well said Jase, Rocky is a quality fighter, the ’suzie q’ punch in the walcott fight was just phenominal though, the freezeframe is brilliant!
good job the 1st walcott fight wasnt a twelve rounder..otherwise rocky would have lost.and i dont remember jersey joe cutting off the rocks legs or incredibly short arms!p.s is larry holmes an armchair critic.pps i think rocky is still wonderful please dont whip me
Liam. everytime you say “under rated” in this article I take it you actually mean over rated, read it back to yourself, its contradicting the point your trying to make.
By saying that claiming a certain fighter is the greatest is stupid, your calling every journolist who has ever written anything about boxing stupid and defeats the purpose of your article.
And your calling youreslf stupid by saying at the end that rocky was the greatest.
But a very good overview of Marciano’s qualities nonetheless, the point of writing is to present persuasive argument and you’ve certainly done that so well done. Its just a shame you’ve contradicted yourself a couple of times throughout an otherwise fine display of writing.